The Brink: Prof. Byrne Explains Why Homelessness Risks Are on the Rise for Retired Adults
As older adults struggle to save for retirement in a rapidly changing economy, housing insecurity is one of the most dire consequences retirees face. Prof. Thomas Byrne from BU School of Social Work talked to BU’s The Brink about the causes of homelessness among older adults, and how we as individuals and as a society can help prevent it.
Excerpt from “How to Save for Retirement—and Why Most of Us Haven’t (or Can’t) Save Enough” by Joel Brown:
‘There is clear evidence that we are in the midst of a growing crisis of homelessness and housing insecurity among older adults,’ says Thomas Byrne, a BU School of Social Work associate professor of social welfare policy whose research focuses on the causes, consequences, and policy solutions to homelessness and housing insecurity. ‘This crisis is driven in part by the substantial rise in housing costs throughout the country over the past decade or so, which have far outstripped overall inflation and increases in income.’
In other words, a rent hike can throw older adults who have been stably housed their entire lives into a housing crisis, especially people who worked in lower-paying jobs, collect less from Social Security, and may not have a pension or private retirement plan, says Byrne.”